Unexpected Delight

I reread the transcribed note. Only in my family would we announce a family meeting with a coded note written in runes. I sighed. What is so important that they couldn't have just called?

I pulled into the drive. It looked like it was going to be everyone today. Even my grandmother from out of state was in the yard talking to her youngest son, my dad. I turned off my Beetle and stepped out of the car. It didn't take much to get everyone's attention, just slamming the car door and shouting 'Hello'. They looked at me and smiled.

Mom was the first to come and talk to me. She handed me a stack of note cards. I glanced over them and saw it was a speech. I pulled her inside.

"What the heck, mom? You want me to give a speech to a group of people, most of which I haven't seen in years, without telling me but five minutes before hand?"

"Sweetheart, you don't understand, that isn't just any speech.... It's a speech on your betrothal." Mom looked at the ground. I read the first card.

"And just whom did I 'choose' to be wedded to?" I asked slowly. There was a tap on my shoulder. I turned and saw a man whom I thought I'd never see. "Shane?"

"Yeah, it's me. What do you say?"

"You don't tell me you're coming down. You don't even talk about marriage. Never drop a hint. You stop talking to me for weeks. And you expect me to accept the half thought out, out of the blue proposal?"

"Read these cards, love, all the way through." He handed me a stack of cards as well.

I shook my head and noticed my mom had left. I looked at the cards. These were carefully written by hand... Neatly, not my father's scrawl, but not my mom's script either. I guess it was Shane's handwriting. Reading was pretty fast, only five cards, just the front side.

This is going to be a shock to some of you but I believe I have found the love of my life. I know none of you have met me before today, but at this moment it doesn't matter. I've already talked to her mother and father, who helped me arrange this. I think that this woman is the most wonderful, most beautiful person I've ever met. She's sweet, kind, smart, can be sarcastic, she loves books (and I don't think it's just the good ones either). This will probably piss her off that I never even dropped a hint about this but I really wanted to surprise her. But in front of you all, I will do something that will either make me the happiest and luckiest man alive or will cause my death...

There was nothing past that and I knew he wouldn't need it because those are words easy to memorize. I laughed then grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him closed to me.

"If you ever, and I mean ever, make something like this happen without even one conversation on the subject before hand again, you will be in the doghouse." I kissed him then let go of his shirt and handed him back his cards. I tore the ones my mom gave me and threw them in the trash before we walked outside to speak to my rather large family.